Where did Americans Travel Most in the First Half of 2015?
Hotel Price Index reveals Midwest, Southwest and Western cities are surging domestically
- The Grand Canyon is now considered a top domestic destination, after drawing in visitors from around the country and jumping dramatically in popularity.
- Canadian cities made a good showing in the top international destinations, as Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal and Niagara Falls were all included in the Top 15.
- New York, Orlando, and Las Vegas are yet again the most popular destinations for international travelers looking to experience the U.S. culture.
DALLAS, Aug. 27, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- With summer winding down and holiday travel plans beginning to take shape, Hotels.com® has released the most popular cities from the first half of 2015, highlighting the most popular domestic and international destinations based on data from the Hotel Price Index™ (HPI®).
Top Domestic Destinations
While the Top 10 U.S. destinations for American travelers remained largely the same as the first half of 2014, several Southwest and Midwest destinations rose in popularity. After seeing record-breaking crowds this year, the Grand Canyon region made the biggest jump in the rankings from outside the Top 50 to #45. Phoenix also experienced an increase in popularity in the first half of 2015 after being on the national stage and hosting the country's biggest sporting event in February. The city jumped two spots to become the 27th most popular domestic destination, replacing Atlantic City, which fell 12 spots to #39.
Kansas City (#29) and St. Louis (#30) also made big leaps as each moved ahead four spots to join Chicago (#6) and Detroit (#28) as top Midwest destinations. California hotspots San Diego (+1 spot to #4) and Anaheim (+2 to #17) also rose in domestic popularity, but with a revitalized downtown and a flurry of new restaurant openings, it was the state capital of Sacramento (+4 spots to #31) that saw the biggest increase on the west coast.
|
50 Most Popular Domestic Cities for American Travelers | |||||
|
City |
H1* 2015 vs H12014 Change |
City |
H1 2015 vs H12014 Change |
City |
H1 2015 vs H12014 Change |
|
1. Las Vegas, Nev. |
No Change |
18. Philadelphia, Pa. |
-1 |
35. Reno, Nev. |
+3 |
|
2. New York, N.Y. |
No Change |
19. Seattle, Wash. |
-1 |
36. Raleigh, N.C. |
+1 |
|
3. Orlando, Fla. |
No Change |
20. Dallas, Texas |
+1 |
37. Jacksonville, Fla. |
-1 |
|
4. San Diego, Calif. |
+1 |
21. Nashville, Tenn. |
-1 |
38. Newark, N.J. |
+2 |
|
5. Los Angeles, Calif. |
-1 |
22. Portland, Ore. |
No Change |
39. Atlantic City, N.J. |
-12 |
|
6. Chicago, Ill. |
No Change |
23. Tampa, Fla. |
+1 |
40. Savannah, Ga. |
+1 |
|
7. San Francisco, Calif. |
No Change |
24. Fort Lauderdale, Fla. |
-1 |
41. Honolulu, Hawaii |
-2 |
|
8. Washington, D.C. |
No Change |
25. Myrtle Beach, S.C. |
+1 |
42. Albuquerque, N.M. |
+1 |
|
9. Houston, Texas |
No Change |
26. Charlotte, N.C. |
-1 |
43. Columbus, Ohio |
+1 |
|
10. San Antonio, Texas |
No Change |
27. Phoenix, Ariz. |
+2 |
44. Charleston, S.C. |
-2 |
|
11. Atlanta, Ga. |
No Change |
28. Detroit, Mich. |
No Change |
45. Grand Canyon |
New to list |
|
12. Boston, Mass. |
No Change |
29. Kansas City, Mo. |
+4 |
46. Arlington, Va. |
-1 |
|
13. New Orleans, La. |
No Change |
30. St. Louis, Mo. |
+4 |
47. Pigeon Forge, Tenn. |
+3 |
|
14. Denver, Colo. |
No Change |
31. Sacramento, Calif. |
+4 |
48. Oklahoma City |
No Change |
|
15. Miami, Fla. |
No Change |
32. Indianapolis, Ind. |
-2 |
49. Memphis, Tenn. |
No Change |
|
16. Austin, Texas |
No Change |
33. Baltimore, Md. |
-2 |
50. Virginia Beach, Va. |
-4 |
|
17. Anaheim, Calif. |
+2 |
34. Salt Lake City, Utah |
-2 |
||
Top International Destinations for Americans
For U.S. travelers going abroad in the first half of 2015, Canada again was the place to visit. Toronto (#4) and Vancouver (#5) remained in the Top 5, while Montreal jumped two spots to #6 and Niagara Falls remained in the Top 20 at #14.
The list of most popular international destinations for Americans in the first half of 2015 also featured several newcomers. Budapest's international airport is on pace to break 2014's record number of passengers and the Hungarian capitol saw one of the biggest jumps in popularity internationally, breaking into the rankings at #41. Meanwhile, Mexico's Ciudad Juarez (#44), which launched a tourism campaign called "Juarez is Waiting for You" in April to attract travelers, entered the Top 50 at #44.
Other international cities to rise in popularity in the first six months of 2015 included Bangkok (+10 to #11), Punta Cana (+9 spots to #40), Sydney (+5 spots to #28) and Dubai (+5 spots to #17).
|
50 Most Popular International Cities for American Travelers | |||||
|
City |
Country |
H1 2015 vs H1 2014 Change |
City |
Country |
H1 2015 vs H1 2014 Change |
|
1. London |
United Kingdom |
No Change |
26. Riviera Maya |
Mexico |
+3 |
|
2. Paris |
France |
No Change |
27. Prague |
Czech Republic |
No Change |
|
3. Rome |
Italy |
No Change |
28. Sydney |
Australia |
+5 |
|
4. Toronto |
Canada |
No Change |
29. Milan |
Italy |
+3 |
|
5. Vancouver |
Canada |
No Change |
30. Copenhagen |
Denmark |
-2 |
|
6. Montreal |
Canada |
+2 |
31. Shanghai |
China |
-6 |
|
7. Barcelona |
Spain |
-1 |
32. Panama City |
Panama |
+3 |
|
8. Tokyo |
Japan |
-1 |
33. Los Cabos |
Mexico |
-2 |
|
9. Hong Kong |
Hong Kong |
No Change |
34. Vienna |
Austria |
+2 |
|
10. Amsterdam |
Netherlands |
No Change |
35. Athens |
Greece |
+3 |
|
11. Bangkok |
Thailand |
+10 |
36. Beijing |
China |
-6 |
|
12. Venice |
Italy |
No Change |
37. Stockholm |
Sweden |
+4 |
|
13. Madrid |
Spain |
+1 |
38. Edinburgh |
United Kingdom |
+2 |
|
14. Niagara Falls |
Canada |
-3 |
39. Bogota |
Colombia |
No Change |
|
15. Florence |
Italy |
-2 |
40. Punta Cana |
Dominican Republic |
+9 |
|
16. Mexico City |
Mexico |
No Change |
41. Budapest |
Hungary |
New to List |
|
17. Dubai |
United Arab Emirates |
+5 |
42. Vallarta |
Mexico |
+1 |
|
18. Dublin |
Ireland |
-1 |
43. Bali |
Indonesia |
New to List |
|
19. Istanbul |
Turkey |
-1 |
44. Ciudad Juarez |
Mexico |
New to List |
|
20. Cancun |
Mexico |
No Change |
45. Calgary |
Canada |
No Change |
|
21. Berlin |
Germany |
+3 |
46. Frankfurt |
Germany |
+1 |
|
22. Singapore |
Singapore |
-3 |
47. Brussels |
Belgium |
+3 |
|
23. Munich |
Germany |
+3 |
48. Buenos Aires |
Argentina |
-11 |
|
24. San Juan |
Puerto Rico |
-9 |
49. Reykjavik |
Iceland |
New to List |
|
25. Seoul |
South Korea |
-2 |
50. Rio de Janeiro |
Brazil |
-6 |
*H1 is the first half of 2014 or 2015
Top U.S. Destinations for International Travelers
New York (#1), Las Vegas (#2) and Orlando (#3) remained the three most popular U.S. destinations for international visitors in the first half of 2015, while San Francisco surpassed Los Angeles and Miami to reach the #4 spot. The Grand Canyon rose in popularity amongst international visitors as well, moving from #24 to #20. The national park was recently named the sixth most popular international landmark on Chinese travelers' wish lists according to the Hotels.com Chinese international Travel Monitor.
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